A CULINARY DELIGHT
About The Dish Cafe
Serving fresh, made-from-scratch meals in Beckley, West Virginia.
Our Story
At The Dish, you have choices. Real ones.
From the beginning, our philosophy has been simple: use the highest quality ingredients available, make as much as we can from scratch, and give people options that fit their lifestyle.
When we place our food orders, we choose the best quality items on the list — not the cheapest option. We source local honey, local maple syrup, farm-fresh eggs, and seasonal fruits and vegetables whenever they’re available. We make our bread in-house without preservatives — which means it molds in 4–5 days, just like real bread should.
But what we’re most proud of isn’t just quality. It’s choice.
You can come in and order:
- Wings with house-made sauces
- Cheese fries with real aged cheddar
- A Halperns angus beef burger with a homemade bun
- A perfectly cooked steak
Or…
- A fully vegan meal
- Vegetarian offerings
- Gluten-free options
- Keto-friendly items
We even reformulated our falafel cakes — removing egg and using aquafaba (the liquid from beans) as the binder — so they’re completely vegan.
We’re not a “health food restaurant.”
We’re not fast food.
We’re simply a scratch kitchen that values real ingredients and real preparation.
Our wing sauces are made in-house.
Our breads are made in-house.
Our dough is hand-tossed.
Our cheeses are real.
Our ingredients are intentional.
We offer a thoughtfully prepared meal — and the freedom to choose what works for you.
Thank you for supporting a restaurant that believes you deserve options.
At The Dish Café, we focus on simple things done right. Real ingredients, fresh preparation, and food that people actually want to come back for.
We build our menu around quality. That means fresh vegetables, house-made sauces, and proteins prepared with care. Our sandwiches are made to order, our salads are built fresh, and our meals are designed to be both satisfying and consistent.
You’ll find options for just about everyone:
Fresh sandwiches made to order
House-made dressings and sauces
Vegetarian and gluten-conscious options
Daily specials and rotating favorites
We’re not trying to be trendy or complicated. We’re focused on being a reliable café in Beckley where you can get a great meal every time.
Everything we serve reflects that mindset. Fresh. Clean. Consistent.
Our Chef
Chef Paul Almond has been leading the kitchen at The Dish Café since 2013, bringing consistency, creativity, and attention to detail to every plate. With a focus on fresh ingredients and clean preparation, he’s built a menu that keeps customers coming back.
From signature sandwiches and daily specials to weekend favorites, his approach is simple: make food that tastes great and holds up every time it’s served.
Meet the People Behind The Dish
Behind The Dish Café and Uptown Dish is a team that believes great food starts with great ingredients, thoughtful preparation and people who genuinely care about the experience they create for every guest.
Proprietors & Original Founders
Michelle Rotellini | Rosemarie Corley | Beverly Hall
When The Dish Café opened its doors in 2013, it was built around a simple philosophy: serve thoughtfully prepared food using high-quality ingredients, make as much as possible from scratch, and give guests choices.
Today, three of the original founders — Michelle Rotellini, Rosemarie Corley and Beverly Hall — remain as proprietors, continuing to guide the business and the philosophy that has been at the heart of The Dish from the beginning.
That philosophy has grown right along with us and now guides both The Dish Café in Daniels and Uptown Dish in downtown Beckley.
Bella Rotellini
General Manager
For Bella Rotellini, The Dish isn’t simply a place to work — it’s a place where she grew up.
Bella was just 12 years old when her family opened The Dish Café in 2013. At 15, she officially joined the team as a host and worked her way through nearly every aspect of restaurant service, becoming a server and bartender while attending college.
Bella graduated from West Virginia University in 2023 with a degree in Business Administration and a minor in Entrepreneurship. She then returned home and enrolled in the Hospitality & Culinary Arts program at WVU Tech, earning her Culinary Arts degree in 2026.
Today, Bella serves as General Manager of both The Dish Café in Daniels and Uptown Dish in Beckley, bringing together the business, hospitality and culinary experience she has spent much of her life developing.
As the creative force behind both locations, Bella helps shape the menus, leads our teams and oversees the overall guest experience. She represents the next generation of The Dish while staying true to the philosophy on which it was founded: quality ingredients, scratch preparation, creative food and choices for everyone at the table.
Our Culinary Team
Christopher Shannon
Culinary Lead, Uptown Dish
Christopher Shannon has been part of The Dish family since the very beginning in 2013.
Chris brings precision and creativity to our culinary team, with an unwavering commitment to getting the details right — every dish at the right temperature, cooked properly and full of flavor.
For 12 years, Chris helped lead the kitchen at The Dish Café in Daniels before stepping into the culinary lead role at Uptown Dish in downtown Beckley. There, he brings The Dish philosophy to a different style of dining, creating fresh, scratch-made breakfasts and lunches along with creative daily specials.
Beyond his culinary skills, Chris’s quick wit and great sense of humor help keep a fast-paced kitchen positive, making him an invaluable part of both our team and our culture.
O’Dell Russell
Co-Kitchen Manager, The Dish Café
With more than 15 years of experience in the kitchens of well-known local restaurants, O’Dell Russell brings experience, consistency and strong kitchen leadership to The Dish Café.
As Co-Kitchen Manager, O’Dell oversees day-to-day kitchen operations alongside Lucas Dickenson, including food preparation, ordering, inventory and maintaining the quality and consistency our guests expect.
A veteran behind the grill, O’Dell has a particular talent for steaks, burgers and proteins, where timing and temperature make all the difference. His years of hands-on restaurant experience give him the ability to keep a busy kitchen moving while never losing sight of what matters most: the food leaving the kitchen.
Lucas Dickenson
Co-Kitchen Manager, The Dish Café
Lucas Dickenson brings a combination of culinary training, hands-on experience and natural kitchen talent to The Dish Café.
Lucas joined The Dish while studying Culinary Arts at WVU Tech, bringing with him more than five years of experience working in a variety of restaurant and destination hospitality kitchens throughout the region. That combination of classroom training and real-world experience gave him a strong foundation that he has continued to build upon at The Dish.
Today, Lucas serves alongside O’Dell Russell as Co-Kitchen Manager, sharing responsibility for daily kitchen operations, preparation, quality, inventory and the coordination required to keep a busy scratch kitchen running smoothly.
Lucas is equally comfortable behind the grill, working the line or helping lead the kitchen through a busy service. His attention to detail, calm approach and willingness to jump in wherever he’s needed have made him an important part of our culinary leadership team.
One Kitchen Philosophy
Different backgrounds. Different strengths. One shared standard.
Across The Dish Café and Uptown Dish, our culinary team works together around the same philosophy we’ve had since the beginning: start with quality ingredients, prepare them with care, make it from scratch whenever we can, and give our guests real choices.
That’s The Dish.